Amazon boosts Washington's space workforce
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Washington resident Dezmond Hernandez prepares satellite hardware for testing in a thermal vacuum chamber, which simulates the extreme conditions of space. Photo: Courtesy of Amazon
Aerospace jobs are booming in Washington state, and Amazon is helping some frontline employees trade warehouse gigs for the stars.
Why it matters: Washington is becoming a hub in the commercial space race, and Amazon's education benefits are helping train a new generation of satellite-savvy workers for the company's Project Kuiper and beyond.
By the numbers: Redmond-based companies produce more than half of the satellites in Earth's orbit, according to the Washington State Department of Commerce and the Redmond Space District, a business consortium of local aerospace companies.
- Statewide, the space sector supports more than 13,000 jobs and generates $4.6 billion in economic activity and nearly $80 million in annual state taxes, per the state.
The latest: Three of the nine March graduates of Lake Washington Institute of Technology's new aerospace manufacturing and assembly certificate programs were Amazon workers, said company spokesperson Max Gleber.
- The programs — developed with input from Amazon — are open to the public, but eligible Amazon employees have their tuition fully paid through the company, he said.
What they're saying: Project Kuiper, Amazon's satellite internet initiative, is based in Redmond, and company execs are betting on local talent to help fill the job pipeline, Amazon VP of public policy and community engagement Brian Huseman told Axios.
- "Washington state is becoming the Silicon Valley of space, and we want that to continue," he said.
- Certificate programs like those at LWTech help residents "learn those skills and get those jobs."
Catch up quick: Project Kuiper is Amazon's plan to launch thousands of low-Earth-orbit satellites to expand global broadband access.
Zoom in: Dezmond Hernandez, 24, spent about three years in Amazon fulfillment centers, earning around $15 an hour before he applied for an inventory job with Project Kuiper to get his foot in the door, he told Axios.
- While working full time, he enrolled in aerospace manufacturing and assembly courses at LWTech.
- Now he works at the company's space simulation lab in Redmond, testing satellites in vacuum chambers, reviewing data, and troubleshooting systems.
- His salary has more than doubled, he said.
"It really is life-changing," he told Axios last week. "I always had an interest in space, but I never thought I'd be working on satellites."
Between the lines: Amazon has enrolled more than 250,000 global employees in its upskilling education program since 2012, Gleber said.